by Kim Loraine
We walk through the crowd, and I find myself scanning the perimeter for any sign of Archer. I’m certain he’s here, but the man is like a ninja. He’s stealthy and though I can’t see him, I know he’s watching me.
There’s a fresh drink in my hands just as the lights go down, and Mila comes on stage. She’s all smiles as she introduces the charity we’ll be donating tonight’s auction proceeds to, and then the men are ushered on stage. Kingston leads the pack, looking dapper and dangerous all at once.
A dull throb begins between my eyes and my vision darkens around the edges, the telltale signs of a migraine. “Bloody hell,” I whisper.
“What is it?”
“Migraine. Excuse me, won’t you? I’ll just be a moment.”
Tyler lets me leave without following me, another point in the reasons-I-don’t-want-to-marry-him column. When the cool evening air hits me, I instinctively shiver and let out a soft moan. The pain is worse rather than better, and now I’m dizzy. Disoriented. And I don’t think this is a migraine at all.
“Whoa, there, love. Don’t fall down on me now,” a male voice says, the timbre familiar but fuzzy in my brain. He catches me in his arms and scoops me up as I begin to lose control of my limbs. “I’ve got you now. I wonder what the king will do for the safe return of his lost sister.”
Fear worms its way through my dulled senses. What did he say? It’s then I realize the truth. I’ve been drugged. Kidnapped. And no one knows where I am.
Everything begins to fade as my body loses the battle with the drugs in my system. My thoughts drift to Archer. Surely he’s seen. Surely he’ll come for me. He won’t let me down.
I try to claw at my captor’s face, hidden by a damn mask, but can barely lift my hand. How had this happened? This is a safe place. My country has never been involved in true conflict, not in a hundred years. The man’s breath makes me gag, it’s cloyingly sweet and medicinal, like cherry cough drops.
“Why are you doing this?” I manage to ask.
“You royals have had it too good for too long. It’s time for a change.”
I try to scream, to fight him, but he’s too strong and the drugs in my system keep me weak. “Don’t. Please.”
He ignores me, taking us farther from the safety of my home under cover of darkness. We round the corner, and I see the sleek black car waiting with the engine running. The trunk pops open and with ice cold clarity, I realize my fate. They’re going to put me in there. In the dark. Anxiety takes over, and I scream. I scream until he shoves a cloth in my mouth and tosses me inside. The last thing I hear before I lose my fight against the drug in my system is Archer’s voice. I swear it is him. He’s screaming my name, and even though I’m desperate to claw my way to the surface, I give in to the darkness.
Chapter 4
Waverly
The scent of mildew, and earth fills my head when I finally wake. My arms ache and wrists burn from the rough bindings around them. I tug and hear the clank of metal against metal. Glancing up, I see the chains connected to my shackles. Shackles. Like a prisoner. I am their prisoner. A fresh wave of panic hits me. What are they going to do with me?
“There she is. Wide awake now, princess?” That voice. That familiar voice makes me shudder. It’s the man who took me, but now with my head clear, I can make out his features.
“Lord Waystrom?” How could he betray me like this? “What have I done to deserve this?”
He sneers. “You haven’t done anything, princess. You’re nothing more than collateral damage in a bigger battle.”
My heart hammers and nausea creeps up my throat. “Does Ryder know you have me?”
He shakes his head. “They’re all still blissfully unaware. Once we get ahold of your sister, we’ll have all the leverage we need to get what we want.”
“And…” I swallow back the fear in my voice. “What do you want? You certainly don’t need money.”
“Power. Hasn’t your brother told you there’s a movement to abolish parliament? He’s been fighting to keep our country a democracy. It’s time to take things back to how they were before. The king and his advisors running things.”
“And I suppose you think you’ll be one of the advisors?”
He chuckles. “No, silly girl. I’ll be king. After we take out your brother and you marry me, I’ll take the throne.”
I nearly vomit. “You’re already married.”
“I can be rid of her easily enough. And once we’re married, if you don’t cooperate, I’ll kill your little sister.” A cold sweat breaks out over my body at the look he gives me. “Perhaps I should try out my new toy?”
He comes closer, hands already working his belt, and I kick out, my heel connecting with his knee and sending him to the ground. Victory sings in my blood, until he lashes out and slaps me hard across the face. Blinding pain blossoms behind my eye which quickly changes to a harsh throbbing. Then there’s a pop-pop-pop sound from above us, shouts and crashes, and his eyes go wide.
The door bursts open and I see Archer, blood dripping down his hand, pain in his eyes, and his pistol trained on Lord Waystrom. “Back away from the princess,” he growls.
My captor doesn’t argue. He’s unarmed. He drops to his knees and hangs his head, but I catch the movement of his hands behind his back. In a moment, I’m sure will forever be locked in my mind, he lunges for me with a blade in his grasp.
“Waverly!” Archer’s scream is punctuated by the explosion of gunfire, and Lord Waystrom lands in a heap with the knife still in his hand.
Archer rushes to the man’s body and digs in his pockets until he produces a key, then my rescuer frees me and pulls me to his chest. I breathe him in, committing this feeling to memory and praying it will overshadow the rest of this night. “Can you walk?” he asks, his voice gentle. “We have to get you home.”
I nod. “Yes, I think so.”
In truth, I don’t want him to let go of me. I want to be in his arms for the rest of my life. He holds me close as we make our way upstairs. “Don’t look,” he whispers when we pass the living room. I listen to him, not wanting to see what became of the rest of my kidnappers.
When we get in his car, I finally give in to the adrenaline coursing through me. My body shakes uncontrollably. “Who?”
“Lord Windsor and…” he hesitates but locks eyes with me. “The Duke of Longmire.”
All the air leaves my lungs in a rush. “Are they…dead?”
He shakes his head. “Incapacitated.”
“But the gunfire?”
“I took them out at the knees. They told me where you were after that.”
I nod, strangely grateful he hadn’t killed them. He starts the car and takes me away from this nightmare. In all honesty, I can’t wait to get home, to wash off this horror. But Lord Waystrom’s words echo in my head. Everyone I love is still in danger. “We can’t go back. Not yet.”
“What? Why?”
“There are more of them. We have to protect Alina. They want to kidnap her to get to Ryder. They’re going to kill him.”
“The whole palace is on lockdown. I assure you, the princess is safe.”
“We can’t know who else was in on this plot. If you take me back, who knows what they’ll do.”
He nods, his jaw ticking as he considers our situation. “I’ll take you to a safe place.”
“Give me your phone,” I say, holding out a hand.
“What? No.”
“I have to call my brother.”
“I’ll alert the king.”
He pulls the car to the side of the road and takes his phone out of the pocket of his suit jacket. A hiss of pain escapes him with the movement, and I remember the blood on his hand. “You’re hurt.”
I reach out to touch him, but he jerks away. “I’m fine. Just a nick.”
“What kind of nick?”
He groans. “The knife wound kind.”
“Get out.” I’m surprised by the commanding tone of my voice.
; “No.”
I sigh and grip his arm. The man grunts, but doesn’t back down like I think he will. “Get out of the damned car, Archer. You’re losing blood, hurting, and I’ll not have you driving us off the road because of some misguided sense of duty.” He opens the door and gets out without further argument. We switch places, and I have to adjust the seat in order to reach the pedals, but he doesn’t give me grief about it. “Now, where are we going?”
“My flat. It’s only about twenty minutes away.”
“Good.” I pull the car back onto the road and head the only way I can…straight. “Can you call my brother now? He needs to know there’s a plot against him. He needs to know I’m safe.” I hate the wobble in my voice.
Archer doesn’t answer me, instead, he holds the phone up to his ear. “Your Majesty, I have her. Lord Waystrom is dead and the Duke of Longmire and Lord Windsor are both detained. I’ll send someone to collect them shortly, but you have to keep the palace locked down, and we have to keep quiet about her safety. No one should be trusted. There’s more to this than your sister being taken. They’re after the whole family. They want the crown.”
The car is silent as Archer listens to my brother. “Yes, I understand, Your Majesty. I’ll guard her with my life.” He hangs up and looks at me. “You’re stuck with me, I’m afraid.”
There are worse things in the world than being stuck with the man I’ve been in love with for years. “I’ll survive. I’m sure you’ll see to that.”
Chapter 5
Archer
My shoulder throbs where that asshole stabbed me, but I manage to keep myself conscious through the pain so I can direct Waverly to my flat. We pull into the underground garage and take the lift. I can feel the slow trickle of blood running down my arm. The bleeding isn’t stopping. That’s not good. I need to dress the wound, isolate my shoulder, rest.
“Just a bit farther,” I say through clenched teeth.
“You’re awfully pale, Archer. Are you sure you’re okay?”
My head is swimming from a mixture of pain and blood loss. “I need to get inside and see to this.”
The effort to fish my keys from my pocket should be a solid indication that I’m not doing well. My arm feels like lead, but I manage. I let us both inside, and stumble away from her, to my bathroom where my medical kit is stashed under the sink. Stripping to the waist, I grab a clean washcloth and press it to the gash on my shoulder. It hurts like a son of a bitch, and I have to bite back a curse. Then another wave of dizziness hits me and before I know it, I’m falling. I manage to get myself seated on the toilet, but knock the entire kit to the floor in the process.
“Fuck,” I say, trying to lean down and not end up on the floor at the same time.
“Archer?” Waverly peeks inside, eyes wide as she takes in what must be my blood covered chest. “Oh my god, you’re really hurt. You lied to me!” She rushes to my side, her hands fluttering over me. “What do I do?”
“Grab the disinfectant, some gauze, and tape. I just need it bound and to rest. The bleeding will stop.”
“It looks bad. I think we should call a doctor.”
I shake my head. “No. If a doctor finds you here, you can bet that will make the news. Then they’ll all know their plan failed. We have to catch them first.”
She takes my face between her small soft hands and presses her forehead to mine. Am I hallucinating this? “You’re going to be fine. I promise.” Then she pulls back and grabs some gauze, dousing it in rubbing alcohol. “This is going to hurt.”
I must’ve blacked out because when I wake I’m tucked in my bed. The room is dark, and panic races through me. Where is she? “Sparrow?” I call, reaching out across the bed and instantly regretting the motion. My arm is pure fire.
She appears in the doorway, the hall light making her nothing but a lovely silhouette. “I’m here. Don’t move your arm.”
“Too late,” I bite out. Carefully tossing aside the covers, I sit up and groan as the pain radiates down my arm. I look down my body to find I’m clad in nothing but my boxer briefs and I can’t help but cast an amused glance her way. “Took your liberties, I see?”
Light fills the room when she flips the switch and I see her fully, dressed in one of my button down shirts and nothing else. Good God. “I didn’t want to put you in your bed covered in blood.” Her cheeks go pink and she casts her eyes downward. “I’d never undressed a man before.”
Oh, I didn’t need to know that about her because now all I want to do is be the only man she does anything with. My dick thickens even though it shouldn’t. The bastard has a mind of his own. “I’m sure this wasn’t the way you wanted to experience that for the first time.”
“At least it was with you.”
What did she just say? She walks across the room, her gaze hot on mine. “How are you feeling, Archer?”
What is happening? The hunger in her eyes is everything I fantasize about, but I can’t have her. “Your Highness?”
“Yes,” she says, her fingers playing at the collar of her shirt.
“What’s going on here?”
She fiddles with a button and soon her shirt is open to the middle of her sternum, the valley of her breasts exposed to me. “I’m living in the moment. Taking what I want before it’s too late.”
My cock has gone from thick to hard, the heavy length pressing against my thigh. “We can’t.”
“We can. And after what you said to me…we should. I’d be a fool to give myself to anyone but you.”
What I said? Guilt swarms me. I don’t remember what I said after she started tending me. “Princess—”
“Sparrow.”
“What?”
“When I was putting you to bed, you called me Sparrow. You promised you’d always protect and love me. Your Sparrow.”
My heart lurches. “No, Princess, I can’t. I can’t love you in the way I want. You’re not meant for me. The law says so.”
Her eyes fill with tears at the reminder of her future, of an archaic law that says royalty can only marry nobility. “The man I was meant for tried to kidnap me and force me to marry someone else. The man I was meant for wanted to kill my family. As far as I’m concerned, I’ll never marry if I can’t marry you.”
The world stops spinning when she utters those words. “Fuck, Sparrow. Fucking hell.” I reach out with my good arm and grip her wrist. There’s a purple bruise marring the perfect skin there and rage boils in me. “If I could, I’d make you mine forever right now. I’ve loved you on the sidelines for years.”
“I love you too. I know it’s hopeless, but I only see you when I think of my future.”
She runs a hand through my hair, and the slight scrape of her nails on my scalp sends shivers down my spine. I want her, but more than that, I need her. “Only until you go back. Once you’re safe, we have to stop.”
Taking her plump bottom lip between her teeth, she nods. Then she pushes me backward on the bed and straddles me. I feel the heat of her pussy through the cotton of my boxers. With my good arm, I reach between us and trail my fingers up her thigh until I find the wet folds of her cunt. Jesus, she’s bare. “Archer, oh God.”
“You’re quite the seductress.”
“Only for you.”
Something primal runs through me. “That’s right. Now be my good little sparrow and come sit on my face.”
She blushes to the roots of her hair but does as I ask. Careful of my injured shoulder, she gives me access to the perfect petals between her legs, and I taste heaven for the first time.
Chapter 6
Waverly
I can’t move. Bliss overtakes me as Archer’s tongue does wicked things to my clit. His moans and the grip of his hand on my thigh only serve to send me closer and closer to the precipice of what I’m sure will be the most intense pleasure I’ll ever experience. But then he’s gone. His teeth nip my inner thigh, and he says, “Not yet, Sparrow. You can’t come until you’re on my cock.”
A quiver of unbridled pleasure takes hold of me, and I move until I’m back where we started, straddling his hips and staring into his eyes. “I don’t know what to do,” I admit.
“Take off my boxers. Have you seen a man’s cock before?”
I nod, and he frowns. “I…may have an appreciation for porn.”
His eyes take on a wicked gleam. “Oh, you have? So you’re not such an innocent little princess, then.”
“I like to be…informed.”
“And I’d like to be the informant from now on.”
I nod, toying with the band of his boxers. I’m nervous. He feels big from the outside, what will it be like when he’s inside me?
His large palm covers mine, dragging my focus to his handsome face. “Are you sure you’re ready to do this?”
I’ve been dreaming of him since the first day he came to the palace. “Yes. I want it to be you. My first time might be the only time I have a man I love inside me. I want to remember it for the rest of my life.”
The look on his face nearly breaks my heart. “And I have to give you everything you want, Sparrow.”
“I want you.”
He nods and slides our hands down to his lower abdomen. “You have me for as long as we can be together.”
I’m fighting my nerves, trembling as I free his length. He’s long and thick and hard as steel. “It’s so big.”
“I promise it’ll fit. We’re made for each other. You’ll see.”
I position him at my entrance and slowly sink down on him, the pinch and burn of his wide crown stretching me a very real reminder of my innocence.
“All right?” he asks through clenched teeth.
I nod and try to relax, my thighs shaking. He uses both hands to grip my hips and pull me farther down. I know it has to hurt his shoulder, but his expression is determined. He breaks through my virgin barrier, and, suddenly, his body and mine are completely joined. It doesn’t hurt any longer, in fact, it’s a fullness I can’t describe. It’s perfect.